New Haven Independent: Not-For-Profits Plead: Stop The Cuts

Not-For-Profits Plead: Stop The Cuts

“More than 80 heads of local not-for-profits got state lawmakers in a room to urge them to stop the budget blood-letting that’s stretching their operations at a time of great need

The directors and some of their employees and clients gathered at the ConnCAT education and training center in New Haven’s Science Park Thursday morning to issue the plea at a time when recurrent state budgets have led to rounds of painful cuts to social service providers statewide.

The providers said that services for children, the disabled, the mentally ill, the addicted, the homeless, the formerly incarcerated, the unemployed and the working poor are all at stake.

New Haven State Sen. Martin Looney, Hamden/Ansonia State Sen. George Logan, New Haven State Reps.Juan Candelaria and Roland Lemar, and Milford/Orange St. Rep. Pam Staneski participated in Thursday’s forum. The not-for-profit leaders called on them to recognize that such agencies provide not only services, but lots of jobs.

Gian-Carl Casa, president and CEO of the Connecticut Community Nonprofit Alliance, said that not-for-profits across the state are reporting that demand for their services are up even as state funding for such services has continued to trend down. He said the biggest challenge is that not-for-profits in the state are funded from the 47 percent of the state budget that is not reserved for fixed costs — meaning that, say, when a big deficit suddenly emerges, those are often among the first line items to get cut…”